


The Real Me

by poyonpon_TJ



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga), Yu-Gi-Oh! Millenium World
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Childhood Friends, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:27:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24145108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poyonpon_TJ/pseuds/poyonpon_TJ
Summary: Pharaoh Atem is exhausted after his work!He is unconscious but gladly, Priest Seto and Priestess Mana,  found him!Since Priest Seto has to take the pharaoh's place for time being, Priestess Mana will be the one in duty to carry their king to his room!
Relationships: Atem/Mana (Yu-Gi-Oh)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	The Real Me

At the hall, only voices of steps are heard to fill the quiet ambience of the place. The priest and the priestess coincidentally walk on the same path. As they are heading towards a direction, the presence of their royal highness appears before them. Both have lowered their heads in honoration manner, however, something odd strikes the great pharaoh, His feet barely step on the surface and the next thing caught on their orbs― is him falling to the ground.

“PHARAOH―!!”

Their voices are unison, but it was Priest Seth who catches the figure of their king in his arms, with the girl behind who has her facade all covered in worry, reflexes are tad late. “Priestess Mana, please take the pharaoh to his room. His health means the most important of all. I am going to take care of things in his place for the time being.” Nodding in agreement, without further ado, the girl slings the other’s arm on her shoulder as she takes him away to the mentioned place.

Placing him on the bed almost as gently, she doesn’t intend to disturb his rest anytime soon. This could be his first chance to have proper resting after so long after all. A sigh is heaved from her, but there exists a smile upon her lips. In spite of how the others might look up to him as the greatest person in the land, the embodiment of the gods, he will always be Atem to her, just one and only friend she has been knowing in childhood― or perhaps ... more than just a friend.  
The next thing she is about to do, is definitely something unplanned. In silence, slowly lifting his head and placing it on her lap. Caressing his cheek with her fingers in one moment. She adores the way he looks, the way he behaves … it's some sort of hypnotizing and brings her palm to pat his extravagant hair afterwards. Missing these moments which could be easily done back then in the past. Never thought, the pharaoh wakes up much sooner than expected. The eyelids are revealing the purple hues behind in non rhythmical motion. It makes her startled and a thought of letting go dives in an instant, though the initial awkward dodging is halted by the baritone voice that first sounds hoarse “―It’s all right. Let me stay this way for a while.” For that moment, she thought her heartbeats just increased a bit. “How are you feeling now?” a query slipped out in her unusual tender tones, filling the void with concern. “I don’t feel strength around me, but don’t worry, I will recover with some rest.” Atem pulls off a convincing smile, yet it does not succeed to cast the frown in her brows away. “Don’t push yourself too hard! You got us.”  
“I won’t be as careless next time.”

Any word doesn’t leave her mouth for a reply, she has done the deed with a pout instead, which makes Atem couldn't help but to have his expression soften. “Mana, you haven’t changed.”  
“No, I have. More precisely, we have. Our roles, the demands, they have limited our freedom much. I won’t be allowed to talk with you unless it’s about the duty-related stuff, Not to mention, doing what I am currently doing.”  
For someone who is carefree and loves freedom so much, the feelings of the duties are akin to a summer bird being chained down with shackles― but all this time, she won’t complain, because her deceased master has always been shadowing in her very action, that he will do his job even it means death to protect the pharaoh, and she will definitely carry her master’s will.  
Though lately, the pure determination has been mixed and replaced. Somewhere in her time, she realized something, that the desire to protect him more than anything … It's because of the involvement of another factor― which keeps growing, even until now.

“Though, I am certain there is one thing that hasn’t changed.” those words breaking her thoughts, back to reality.

“How being around you can make me feel like myself. The real me,  
Thank you for always staying by my side, Mana.” and while saying that, he gently tugs her now raven hued strands before slowly slides down to release.  
Atem is always a straightforward guy, but she doesn’t expect this. It catches her off guard, and it shades her cheeks with pink. “I-it’s unusual for you to say things like this, you know!”

“Is it?”

“It is!”

Sometimes, he does feel that Mana knows about him more than himself. A smile is curled up, once again. “..perhaps you are right, but sometimes … all I wanted is.. simply being able to be more honest with my own feelings.  
I think there is nothing wrong with saying it out once in a while.”

“Let me correct you,  
Not once in a while, but―  
How about doing it more often?”

Her words might become a backfire to her later on, and as Atem notices the potentials, he would then return to her with his trademark loop-sided grin. “Have you done it yourself?”

Averting her gaze, now unable to control the crawling heat on her face. “Uh― well- I am trying!”

He is not stupid.  
They are both not that dense to ignore the mutual feelings they store for each other,  
But getting the approval from the whole caste system, nor the society is impossible.  
Still, without having to prove it with words, they speak through their affectionate gazes, and that is more than enough to explain.

Chuckling a bit, the rarest scene you will ever catch from the pharaoh.

“We are even then.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, hello! As we are all aware, vaseshipping is like, very minor compared to the other ships in YGO, but I am a simple human who thinks that they are cute together, so ... without hoping anything, I just posted this to fulfil my own satisfaction!  
> I really like Palladium Oracle Mana's character design and I was thinking if that is her adult form in Seth's reign (after Atem's death), but here, I simply make an AU where Atem survived and continues to reign instead!


End file.
